Hooded Horse is proud to announce a new title joining its roster of world-class strategic and tactical games, developed by industry veterans who have worked on everything from StarCraft to Guild Wars. Announced at the Xbox Partner Preview, Lost Lake Games' debut title, Vaunted, is an upcoming tactical RPG that challenges players to seize the ultimate score.

Vaunted throws players into a galaxy where chaos reigns supreme, and a millennium has passed since the fall of the last galactic empire. A galaxy where mercenaries and treasure hunters scrap over priceless imperial relics buried in far-flung ruins. Join dysfunctional frenemies Dyse, Gendril, and Kyvaath as they battle against ruthless rivals, monstrous aliens, and giant robots in search of the ultimate score. That is, if they can get their angry benefactor off their backs!

Scythe has introduced the Magoroku (SCMR-1000) dual-tower air CPU cooler. The launch comes from the company's Japan headquarters, following the shutdown of the Scythe European branch announced on April 26 last year. The cooler itself isn't entirely new, an early prototype surfaced around mid-2024, with a more polished unit later shown at Computex 2025. Standing 155 mm tall, the Magoroku is designed to fit a wider range of cases while still offering a full dual-stack heatsink layout. The cooler measures 134 x 155 x 142.5 mm, including its bundled 120 mm fans. The fan uses a standard 4-pin PWM connector, operates between 350-2,000 RPM, and at full speed, it can reach up to 60.29 CFM, with a maximum noise of 26.88 dBA. Static pressure is rated up to 2.45 mmH2O.

Cooling is handled by six 6 mm nickel-plated heatpipes feeding into the dual-tower heatsink. The cooler weights 1,036 g with the fan installed, putting it in line with other budget-oriented dual-tower designs. A thin vibration-dampening rubber layer is also included on each of the fans. Compatibility includes Intel LGA 1851, 1700, 1200, and 115x platforms, alongside AMD AM4 and AM5. The Scythe Magoroku is scheduled to go on sale starting April 10th, priced at ¥4,980 (tax included) or about $32 (at the current exchange rate), right in the affordable market segment.

Satechi has added a wired keyboard and mouse to its Slim LX lineup, both sharing the same clean, minimal aesthetic the series is known for. The Slim LX3 is a full-size wired keyboard with a numeric keypad and navigation keys, with a slim profile measuring just 1.7 cm tall and 550 g. It connects via USB-C with a bundled USB-A adapter and works across macOS, Windows, ChromeOS, and iPadOS. A dedicated physical switch allows switching between Mac and Windows. The Slim LX mouse pairs an anodized aluminium body with a metal scroll wheel, weighing in at 92.5 g and measuring 11.05 x 6.12 x 2.84 cm. It is ambidextrous, rated for 3 million clicks, and also uses USB-C with a USB-A adapter included. Cable length on both is 120 cm.

Both come in Silver or Space Black and are available now at the Satechi website and select retailers. The Slim LX3 keyboard is $49.99, while Satechi Slim LX mouse is $24.99.

Espressif Systems (688018.SH) proudly announces the upcoming release of ESP32-S31, a high-performance dual-core Wi-Fi 6 + Bluetooth 5.4 + IEEE 802.15.4 + Ethernet System-on-Chip (SoC). Building on Espressif's proven track record, this versatile SoC addresses the growing demand for advanced IoT applications including consumer and industrial appliances, smart speakers, voice-controlled devices, and automation systems requiring comprehensive wireless connectivity, edge AI capabilities, rich HMI, and robust security features.

ESP32-S31 delivers comprehensive wireless connectivity by combining Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax) in 2.4 GHz band, Bluetooth 5.4 with both Bluetooth LE (Low Energy) and Classic (BR/EDR) support, plus an IEEE 802.15.4 radio enabling Thread and Zigbee protocols for diverse IoT applications. ESP32-S31 will provide a seamless support for Matter protocol over Wi-Fi as well as Thread radio.

MAXSUN today announced the official release of its Intel Arc Pro B70 Series graphics cards, delivering a decisive leap forward in AI computing and professional visualization. Built on a close collaboration with Intel, the new lineup follows the widely acclaimed B60 series and raises the bar with more powerful hardware specifications and a deeply optimized software ecosystem. The result? A platform engineered for AI developers, multi-GPU deployments, and high-intensity professional workloads—without breaking a sweat.

Massive Memory, Effortless Performance
Equipped with 32 GB of VRAM and 32 Xe cores, the MAXSUN Intel Arc Pro B70 series eliminates memory bottlenecks once and for all. Whether handling large-scale AI models or complex visual workloads, the cards ensure seamless data throughput and consistently stable performance. In other words, "out of memory" just became someone else's problem.

Edifier, a global leader in premium audio solutions, today announced the availability of the Edifier M90. Unveiled at CES 2026, the Edifier M90 represents a defining milestone signalling the beginning of the brand's next chapter in home-entertainment audio.

Designed to elevate everyday listening, the M90 features HDMI eARC for seamless, low-latency connectivity with desktop audio, TVs, and streaming platforms, delivering a richer, more immersive experience for movies, games and streaming. With 100 W of bi-amplified power, larger 4-inch aluminium mid-low drivers for deeper bass and silk-dome tweeters for smooth, detailed highs, the M90 delivers powerful, high-fidelity sound. Enhanced connectivity and a flexible design allow it to transition easily from desktop to living-room setups, making the M90 a compact, all-purpose speaker solution.

CRKD, the premium collectible gaming brand known for their highly popular Nitro Deck, and line of premium rhythm gaming products, announced today ATOM+, the next evolution of its collectible keychain controller, designed to deliver powerful gameplay in an ultra-compact form. Expected to begin shipping from June 2026, the ATOM+ is compatible with a wide variety of gaming platforms including Nintendo Switch 2 | 1, PC, mobile devices, tablets, and Smart TVs, bringing big features to a small package, and delivering full-fat gaming on the go.

Small enough to attach to a keychain, backpack or just about anywhere you can imagine, the ATOM+ defies convention, expanding upon the original ATOM with a host of sophisticated features including Thumbsticks for maximum gaming compatibility, and utilizing TMR (Tunnelling Magnetoresistance), technology, a next-generation magnetic sensor designed to forever eliminate Stick Drift, and provide superior precision compared to traditional mechanical Thumbsticks or Hall Effect sensors.

Each week, new games and apps integrating NVIDIA DLSS, NVIDIA Reflex, and advanced ray-traced effects are released or announced, delivering the definitive PC experience for GeForce RTX players. This week, Screamer launches with DLSS 4 with Multi Frame Generation, followed by Subliminal on the 31st. And Playground Games has announced that Forza Horizon 6 is launching May 19th with DLSS 4 and ray tracing.

Additionally, we've unveiled NVIDIA DLSS 5, which delivers an AI-powered breakthrough in visual fidelity by infusing pixels with photorealistic lighting and materials, bridging the gap between rendering and reality.

CRKD, the premium collectible gaming brand known for their highly popular Nitro Deck, and line of premium rhythm gaming products, announced today the ULT PRO, a next-generation professional wireless gaming controller featuring multi-platform connectivity and an array of state-of-the-art technology.

Ideal for professional or competitive gamers who demand precision, customization, and multi-platform compatibility, the ULT PRO sets a new standard in performance, yet is priced competitively, allowing any gamer to take advantage of its premium feature set. Compatible with Nintendo Switch 2 | 1, PC, mobile devices, tablets and Smart TVs, the ULT PRO offers exceptional versatility, seamlessly adapting to a wide variety of gaming platforms.

Razer, the leading global lifestyle brand for gamers, today announced the 2026 evolution of the Razer Blade 16. While maintaining its iconic, industry-leading chassis as the thinnest gaming laptop in Razer's history, the new 2026 model shifts into a new gear of performance for gamers, content creators, and professionals who demand power on the go.

By prioritizing the latest silicon breakthroughs from Intel and faster-than-ever memory clock speeds, the new Blade 16 is engineered for those who demand the latest-generation processing in a form factor that remains impossibly slim.

Dell Technologies (NYSE: DELL) today introduces a transformed commercial portfolio spanning Dell Pro notebooks, Dell Pro Precision workstations, desktops, monitors and client peripherals. Thinner, lighter and more powerful, the new lineup brings a bold, refined design language to commercial devices—prioritizing sleeker silhouettes, premium materials and modern details that elevate everyday productivity. With advances in cooling, power efficiency and support for on-device AI, the portfolio delivers improved performance and long battery life in more portable form factors, enabling a consistent, elevated experience for everyone from frontline workers to senior executives.

Why it matters
Users want sleek, powerful devices. IT needs security, manageability and budget discipline. Dell's reimagined commercial portfolio delivers both. Advanced engineering—modular architecture, improved thermals, AI-ready silicon—allows thinner, lighter designs that maintain enterprise-grade performance and control. Organizations can now deploy modern hardware that professionals prefer without compromising on the standards IT demands.

Arm has made a significant move stepping into production silicon for the first time in its history with the launch of the Arm AGI CPU, a data center processor designed specifically for agentic AI workloads. For over three decades, Arm has been purely an IP licensing business. With the launch of its AGI CPU series, Arm made a fundamental shift in how the company positions itself in the market. The AGI CPU is built on a 3 nm process, packs up to 136 Neoverse V3 cores, runs at a 300 W TDP, and delivers 6 GB/s of memory bandwidth per core at under 100 ns latency. It supports up to 6 TB per chip and DDR5-8800 speeds. On the I/O side, the chip features 96 PCIe Gen 6 lanes along with CXL 3.0 and AMBA CHI (Coherent Hub Interface) links. Each core handles a dedicated program thread, which Arm says eliminates throttling and idle threads under sustained load.

Specifically important in the data center business, density figures are notable. Air-cooled systems can fit up to 8,160 cores per rack, while liquid-cooled systems push that above 45,000. Data centers are expected to need more than four times the current CPU capacity per gigawatt to keep up, and Arm is arguing that x86 architecture carries too much overhead and complexity for this new class of workload. Arm claims more than 2x performance per rack versus x86, adding that this can translate to potential savings of up to $10 billion per gigawatt of AI data center capacity.

Razer, the world's leading lifestyle brand for gamers, proudly announces the launch of the Razer Viper V4 Pro and Razer Gigantus V2 Pro. The latest evolution of esports gear by the #1 gaming mouse brand amongst pro-gamers - this new duo is engineered to give players an edge in today's most demanding competitive game titles.

The Viper V4 Pro takes one of the world's most trusted esports mice and makes it lighter, faster, and more precise, while the Gigantus V2 Pro reimagines Razer's flagship soft gaming mouse mat with five distinct speed ratings so players can choose the surface that locks in the way they play.

JEDEC Solid State Technology Association, the global leader in standards development for the microelectronics industry, today announced the publication of JESD406-5D: LPDDR5/5X Serial Presence Detect (SPD) Contents standard, an update of the Revision C standard that adds support for calculating recovery time when switching operating modes. JESD406-5D is available for free download from the JEDEC website.

LPDDR5/5X memory devices are capable of supporting two sets of timing parameters: a full speed mode and a reduced speed mode that consumes less power. This feature allows for longer battery life for mobile devices which are a common application for LPDDR5/5X chips and modules and may also be leveraged by data centers as the use of LPDDR5/5X devices grows. The updated JESD406-5 standard documents key parameters for calculating the switching time between fast and low power modes, making the feature more efficient and allowing higher system performance.

NVIDIA has released GeForce 595.97 WHQL, a minor bug-fix update with no new Game Ready titles this time. The driver is part of the R595 branch, which has had a fair number of issues. The 595.59 release was pulled entirely back in February after users reported fan detection failures and clock instability, and 595.79 followed shortly after to address a separate batch of issues. This latest release addresses three remaining issues: texture corruption in Halo Infinite on R595 drivers, stability issues in HITMAN World of Assassination when NVIDIA Smooth Motion is enabled, and crashes triggered when enabling DLSS Frame Generation while Instant Replay is active. Known issues still present include missing terrain in some areas of Enshrouded and occasional stutter in Arknights: Endfield. No general bugs are listed as fixed this time.

DOWNLOAD: NVIDIA GeForce 595.97 WHQL

Inspired by the epic world of Dragon's Dogma, GameSir proudly announces the launch of the GameSir G7 Pro Dragon's Dogma 2 Edition-a next-generation controller crafted for warriors seeking precision, power, and platform versatility. Designed for the Arisen, this special edition combines pro-grade performance with exclusive thematic styling, delivering an immersive gameplay experience across Xbox, PC, and Android. The GameSir G7 Pro Dragon's Dogma 2 Edition is available for $89.99/£99.99 from the GameSir website. It also expected to be available on Amazon at a later date.

Refined from the celebrated G7 lineage-G7, G7 SE, and G7 HE-the Dragon's Dogma 2 Edition retains the G7 Pro's elite hardware while showcasing a design worthy of Gransys. Equipped with tri-mode connectivity, Hall Effect analog triggers, GameSir Mag-Res TMR sticks, and a swappable magnetic faceplate, this edition merges mythic aesthetics with cutting-edge engineering.

LG Display, the world's leading innovator of display technologies, today announced that it is beginning the world's first-ever mass production of an LCD panel for laptops equipped with its Oxide 1 Hz technology.

The panel's core feature is its ability to intelligently detect the usage environment. It automatically switches the refresh rate down to 1 Hz when the screen is static and up to 120 Hz when needed. For example, when performing tasks involving primarily still images—such as checking emails or reading e-books and research papers—the panel operates at the lowest refresh rate of 1 Hz. Conversely, it runs in high-refresh-rate mode at up to 120 Hz when streaming content such as movies or sports as well as playing games with frequent screen changes.

The ZimaCube 2 compact NAS and mini-server platform from IceWhale has been announced and is now listed for pre-orders. The lineup is built around 12th Gen Intel Alder Lake processors and includes a standard model with an i3-1215U CPU, a Pro variant with the i5-1235U processor, and a Creator Pack with added GPU support. Measuring 240 x 221 x 220 mm, it's compact but roomy enough to handle high-end configurations without feeling cramped. In terms of storage, you will get six bays supporting 3.5-inch or 2.5-inch drives, either SATA III or NVMe, and up to four M.2 slots for additional capacity. Total storage can reach 164 TB depending on configuration. Expansion includes two PCIe slots, a full-size PCIe 4.0 x16 (physically x4 lanes) for GPUs, and a PCIe 3.0 x8 (physically x2). The latter supports network cards or NVMe expansion. Connectivity is solid with dual Thunderbolt 4 ports, four USB 3.0 Type-A ports, two 2.5 GbE Ethernet ports, plus optional 10 GbE on higher models. HDMI and DisplayPort outputs are included for display support.

As an operating system, it runs ZimaOS Plus, a Linux-based OS optimized for self-hosted services like file storage, media servers, virtual machines, and containerized workloads. The base unit starts at $799, equipped with 8 GB of DDR5 RAM, a 256 GB NVMe SSD, and an Intel Core i3-1215U. The Pro model is priced at $1,299 and features the more powerful i5-1235U CPU along with 16 GB of memory. For users needing higher performance in virtualization, rendering, or machine learning tasks, a Creator Pack version is available for $2,499, this includes the same Core i5 processor, 64 GB of DDR5 RAM, a 1 TB SSD, and an NVIDIA RTX Pro 2000 GPU.

XPPen, a global leader in digital art innovation, today unveiled its new flagship drawing display, the Artist Pro 27 (Gen 2). Combining professional-grade color performance with advanced X-Touch solution on a 27-inch 4K 120 Hz screen, this flagship model offers a transformative creative experience, enabling professional creators to push the boundaries of their craft with stunning color fidelity and an intuitive, efficient workflow.

"At XPPen, we remain committed to advancing digital art technology and empowering creators with professional tools and premium drawing experience," said Brian Huang, Marketing Director at XPPen. "Positioned as Color Master Touchscreen Drawing Display, the Artist Pro 27 (Gen 2) sets a new standard for flagship displays, offering large-format workspace, high performance, and efficient workflow for professional creators. It completes XPPen's premium professional lineup with the Artist Pro series spanning from 14 to 27 inches, offering creators a clear upgrade path as their ambitions grow."

AMD has released Adrenalin Edition 26.3.1 WHQL, adding game support for Crimson Desert and Death Stranding 2: On the Beach, along with FSR Upscaling 4.1 support for Radeon RX 9000 series cards. On the bug fix side, four issues are resolved: a Cyberpunk 2077 crash when loading a saved game with Path Tracing enabled, intermittent loss of mouse and keyboard input in-game and on the desktop when interacting with AMD Software, system crashes when repeatedly changing in-game settings or alt-tabbing on RX 7000 and above, and a failure to enable AMD Noise Suppression on RX 6000 and above.

A few known issues remain. Battlefield 6 still experiences intermittent crashes on Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 systems, texture flickering when AMD Record and Stream is active, and FSR Upscaling and Frame Generation showing as inactive on RX 9000 cards. Death Stranding 2 has intermittent crashes on RX 5000 series, and RoadCraft is also seeing crashes on RX 9000 products. AMD says it is working with developers on the Battlefield 6 issues.

DOWNLOAD: AMD Software Adrenalin 26.3.1 WHQL

Corsair (Nasdaq: CRSR) is proud to unveil the all-new 3200D mid-tower chassis for PC builders who demand excellent performance. The 3200D replaces the 3000D in the Corsair mid-tower lineup and is built for powerful systems with top-tier cooling. It is available in three colorways: Black, White, and an all-new semi-transparent Smoke front panel. Designed to prioritize cooling, the 3200D supports a 360 mm radiator in the front or roof and features an all-new angled fan mount on the bottom of the case to direct cool air towards the GPU.

[Editor's note: Our in-depth review of the Corsair 3200D RS ARGB is now live]

Smart Design, Serious Cooling
The 3200D is thoughtfully engineered to make the most of its footprint while providing ample room for the most powerful hardware available. It offers up to 375 mm of GPU clearance, so even extra-large GPUs like the NVIDIA RTX 5090 have plenty of room to breathe. The spacious interior supports 9x 120 mm or 4x 140 mm fans, with the option to run a 360 mm AIO liquid CPU cooler in either the front or the roof of the chassis for robust CPU cooling. It is also ready for next-gen hardware, with full support for reverse connector motherboards designed for showcase builds with no visible cables.

Intel has quietly rolled out a new mobile CPU in the Raptor Lake lineup, the Core i7-13645HX. The chip is built with Intel's 10 nm process and splits its 14 cores across six Performance cores and eight Efficient cores, just like the Core i7-13650HX. That means both share the same 20-thread count, 24 MB of Smart Cache, max turbo clock at 4.9 GHz, and power specs: 55 W base, 157 W peak. However, there are some differences. The i7-13645HX supports DDR5-5600, up from 4800 on its older sibling. With that comes also an increase in memory bandwidth to 89.6 GB/s, up from 76.8 GB/s. It also sports a more capable Intel UHD Graphics P730 with 32 execution units versus just 16 on the i7-13650HX. The older part still has a slight edge in efficiency: its E-cores can boost to 3.6 GHz, while this one tops out at 3.5 GHz. But for users who need faster memory and better integrated graphics, especially those running light gaming or video workloads, the new chip might be the better choice.

Compared to the i7-13700HX, which has eight P-cores, a higher boost clock (5.0 GHz), 30 MB cache, and slightly more power headroom, this one feels like something in between, less raw performance than the top-tier HX model but with better memory support. Intel rebranded Raptor Lake as Core 200 series in late 2024, positioning it for higher-end laptops. The i7-13645HX appears to be part of that push: a refined option for systems targeting mainstream performance without stepping up to the full HX stack. No official pricing yet, as this is likely to show up in select gaming and creator machines over the next few months. Remember that just this Tuesday, Intel rolled out its Core Ultra 200HX Plus mobile processors, including the Core Ultra 9 290HX Plus and Core Ultra 7 270HX Plus. These processors add new features and architectural refinements, including support for the new Intel Binary Optimization Tool that can improve native performance in select games.

Micron Technology, Inc. (Nasdaq: MU) today announced results for its second quarter of fiscal 2026, which ended February 26, 2026.

Fiscal Q2 2026 highlights

• Revenue of $23.86 billion versus $13.64 billion for the prior quarter and $8.05 billion for the same period last year
• GAAP net income of $13.79 billion, or $12.07 per diluted share
• Non-GAAP net income of $14.02 billion, or $12.20 per diluted share
• Operating cash flow of $11.90 billion versus $8.41 billion for the prior quarter and $3.94 billion for the same period last year

Today, imec, a world-leading research and innovation hub in advanced semiconductor technologies, announces the arrival of the ASML EXE:5200 High NA EUV lithography system, the most advanced lithography tool available today. With this strategic milestone, imec reinforces its position as the industry's launchpad into the ångström era, giving its global partners ecosystem unparalleled early access to the next generation of chip-scaling technologies. Integrated directly with a comprehensive suite of patterning and metrology tools and materials, the High NA EUV system will empower imec and its ecosystem partners to unlock the performance needed to pioneer sub-2 nm logic and high-density memory technologies that will fuel the rapid growth of advanced AI and high-performance computing.

Luc Van den hove, CEO of imec: "The past two years have marked an important chapter for High NA (0.55NA) EUV lithography, with imec and ASML joining forces with the ecosystem in its joint High NA EUV Lithography Lab in Veldhoven (The Netherlands) to pioneer High NA EUV technology. With the installation of the EXE:5200 High NA EUV lithography system into our 300 mm cleanroom in Leuven (Belgium), we aim to bring these High NA EUV patterning technologies to an industry-relevant scale and to develop the next-generation High NA EUV patterning use cases. Its unmatched resolution, improved overlay performance, high throughput, and a new wafer stocker that improves process stability and throughput, will give our partners a decisive advantage in accelerating the development of sub-2 nm chip technologies. As the industry moves into the ångström era, High NA EUV will be a cornerstone capability, and imec is proud to lead the way by offering its partners the earliest and most comprehensive access to this technology."

Today Quantum Machines launches The Open Acceleration Stack, a first-of-its-kind framework allowing users to integrate any classical processor (XPU) into their quantum control stack. This novel architecture allows quantum computers not only to be Quantum Error Correction (QEC)-ready and AI-ready, but also QEC- and AI-native.

The Open Acceleration Stack marks a significant expansion of Quantum Machines' Orchestration Platform, the industry's leading hardware and software framework for the control and operation of quantum processors. Using Quantum Machines' OPNIC (OPX Network Interface Card) and NVIDIA NVQLink, the framework enables an ultra-low, microsecond-level latency link between its proprietary Pulse Processing Unit (PPU) and high-performance accelerators, including GPUs, CPUs, FPGAs and ASICs.

Goodbye Desktop PC: The Tuxedo Gemini 17 - AMD represents the classic desktop replacement notebook. With a large 17.3-inch high-resolution screen, an absolute top-tier CPU, powerful graphics, and enhanced cooling for quieter operation, it delivers excellent stationary performance in a portable, subtly designed workstation - ideal for both work and play. While its Intel-based sibling with Core i9-14900HX and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti is aimed at users with very high graphics requirements, the Gemini 17 - AMD primarily shines with its exceptionally fast high-end processor.

Solid Desktop Replacement Chassis with Classic Workstation Flair
With an overall height of just under 2.9 cm and a weight of 2.8 kg, this Linux desktop replacement is not designed for constant mobility, but still allows comfortable transportation over short to medium distances.

Intel is accelerating its advanced packaging push with a major move in Malaysia. According to reports from The Edge Malaysia, the company's new complex there, part of Project Pelican, is now 99% complete and set for full operations later this year. Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim confirmed he met with Intel CEO Tan Lip-Bu and executives to review the project progress. The first phase will launch assembly and testing capabilities for advanced packaging, marking a key step in Intel's foundry expansion strategy. The facility is designed to handle die sort, prep, and full production flows across both EMIB (Embedded Multi-die Interconnect Bridge) and Foveros technologies, critical for supporting high-volume chiplet-based designs. As we reported in December last year, Intel values the project at approximately $7 billion and aims to transform Malaysia into a major regional hub for its advanced packaging operations. An additional $200 million investment has already been committed to finish the site.

Intel continues to advance its EMIB packaging approach. Unlike traditional silicon interposers used by NVIDIA in Blackwell, EMIB embeds conductive bridges directly into the substrate. This approach is cheaper, more efficient, and more suited for high-density chips. Intel is now aiming for 120 x 120 mm packages from the current 100 x 100 mm. These larger dies can support up to twelve HBM stacks, compared with eight in current designs. By 2028, Intel plans 120 x 180 mm packages capable of handling twenty-four HBM stacks. The company has also upgraded EMIB-T, its latest version incorporating through-silicon vias (TSV), to support next-gen HBM4 memory, now entering mass production. That is critical as AI chipmakers demand higher bandwidth and tighter integration. However, bigger isn't always easier. Scaling up package size increases warpage risk and yield challenges during manufacturing.

ASUS today announced the ExpertCenter PN55 Mini PC, a compact Copilot+ PC powered by the latest AMD Ryzen AI 400 Series processors with class-leading multithreaded performance and advanced XDNA 2 NPU delivering up to 55 AI TOPS. Integrated AMD Radeon 800M graphics provides prosumers and content creators with exceptional, incredibly detailed visuals. Despite its small footprint, ExpertCenter PN55 offers dual LAN and up to six USB ports, giving it the flexibility to take on a variety of tasks including AI-accelerated productivity, collaboration, and content creation. It also offers design features that enable tool-less upgrades.

Enhanced productivity with Copilot+
ASUS ExpertCenter PN55 Mini PC is powered by an up to AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 470 processor featuring up to 55 TOPS of XDNA2 NPU performance. This robust compute engine enables smooth generative AI tasks, allowing users to generate ideas, create content, and upscale images in seconds. Paired with up to 96 GB of DDR5 memory, ExpertCenter PN55 ensures rapid access to AI-accelerated workloads and supports seamless multitasking for everyday productivity tasks such as web browsing, presentations, and content creation. AI PCs accelerate everyday tasks by automating repetitive work, helping users save time and work more efficiently.

System76 has refreshed its Thelio Mira desktop series with a focus on better thermals, easier serviceability, and a cleaner overall design, while it's still all built in-house at the company's facility in Denver. The new chassis mixes aluminium, steel, and a tempered glass front panel, with a vertical control bar consolidating the power button and front I/O into one clean strip. System76 uses steel fasteners throughout, and the panels are designed for quick access when you need to get inside for upgrades or maintenance. On the cooling side, System76 made improvements, the company claims up to 19% higher sustained CPU clock speeds and temperature drops of up to 13.5°C thanks to liquid cooling and revised airflow.

System76 also made changes to the specs as it is built around an ASRock X870 Pro RS WiFi motherboard. Processor options top out at the Ryzen 9 9950X or 9950X3D, memory goes up to 192 GB of DDR5, and storage can reach 28 TB spread across NVMe and SATA drives. As for the GPU, you can choose a single graphics card up to an RTX 5090 or Radeon RX 9070 XT over PCIe 5.0. Connectivity includes USB4, 2.5 GbE, and Wi-Fi 7, with a mix of front and rear USB ports. PSU requirements start at 750 W and go up to 1000 W for the beefier GPU configs. As with other System76 products, the Thelio Mira carries open-source firmware elements and is built with long-term usability in mind.

Supermicro, Inc. (NASDAQ: SMCI), a Total IT Solution Provider for AI, Cloud, Storage, and 5G/Edge, today unveiled one of the industry's first context memory (CMX) storage server as part of NVIDIA STX reference architecture announced NVIDIA GTC 2026. STX is a new modular reference architecture from NVIDIA which is designed to accelerate the full lifecycle of AI.

"Supermicro continues to be first to market with new rack scale architectures designed to exceed the needs of a rapidly evolving AI Factory customer base," said Charles Liang, president and CEO of Supermicro. "Building upon last year's introduction of the Petascale JBOF (Just a Bunch of Flash), where we proved the feasibility of a JBOF powered by NVIDIA BlueField-3 DPUs, we have developed the CMX storage server. Our prototype of the latest storage architecture demonstrates the level of our collaboration with NVIDIA, and our commitment to be first-to-market with game changing technologies."

Dell has given its Alienware gaming laptop lineup a boost with Intel's newest Core Ultra 200HX Plus series processors, which are part of the Arrow Lake-HX Refresh. This update comes after Intel rolled out its new mobile chips, including the Core Ultra 9 290HX Plus and Core Ultra 7 270HX Plus. These chips are designed to handle demanding gaming and workstation tasks, and they come with extra features like the Intel Binary Optimization Tool. The updated Dell lineup covers 18-inch and 16-inch laptops from the Alienware Area-51 series and Alienware 16X Aurora. The 18-inch model continues to target maximum performance, now configurable with up to the Core Ultra 9 290HX Plus, a 24-core chip with boost clocks reaching 5.5 GHz, while the Core Ultra 7 270HX Plus offers a 20-core option with boost up to 5.3 GHz.

The 16-inch models bring more notable changes. As previously announced in January at CES 2026, both the Alienware 16 Area-51 and 16X Aurora now feature anti-glare OLED panels, keeping the 2560 × 1600 resolution and 240 Hz refresh rate, but improving response time to 0.2 ms and increasing peak brightness to 620 nits, up from 500 nits on previous LCD configurations. The Alienware 16X Aurora also gets a GPU upgrade, now configurable up to an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti, replacing the previous RTX 5070. Memory support stays the same, with the 16X Aurora maxing out at DDR5-5600, while storage choices go from 1 TB to 4 TB, with PCIe 4.0 support on some setups.

HPE (NYSE: HPE) today announced significant innovations to the NVIDIA AI Computing by HPE portfolio focused on large-scale AI factories and supercomputers that enable customers to scale, deploy efficiently, and gain faster time-to-insight. The full-stack AI solutions with NVIDIA include tightly integrated compute, GPUs, networking, liquid cooling, software, and services designed for at-scale and sovereign environments. AI-forward organizations and leading research institutions, including Argonne National Laboratory, HLRS, Hudson River Trading (HRT), and the Korea Institute of Science and Technology Information (KISTI), have chosen HPE AI infrastructure and AI factories with NVIDIA to advance innovation.

HPE brings NVIDIA AI solutions to its industry-leading supercomputing platform
Research laboratories, sovereign entities and large enterprises are rapidly adopting AI to enhance traditional high performance computing (HPC) workloads. For organizations seeking to significantly expedite scientific discovery, HPE is making the following NVIDIA products available on its second-generation exascale-class supercomputing platform designed to unify AI and HPC - the HPE Cray Supercomputing GX5000.

ASUS today unveiled its fully liquid-cooled AI infrastructure at NVIDIA GTC 2026 (Booth# 421), delivering a comprehensive, end-to-end solution powered by the NVIDIA Vera Rubin platform. Under the theme Trusted AI, Total Flexibility, this customizable framework—from rack-scale AI Factories, desktop AI supercomputing, Edge AI to Enterprise AI solutions—enables enterprises and cloud providers to build high-performance, energy-efficient large-scale AI clusters with unmatched efficiency and dramatically reduced PUE and TCO.

As a provider of NVIDIA GB300 NVL72 and NVIDIA HGX B300 systems, the flagship ASUS offering is the ASUS AI POD built on the NVIDIA Vera Rubin platform—a liquid-cooled, rack-scale powerhouse designed for massive AI workloads. Through strategic partnerships with leading cooling and component providers, ASUS offers diverse cooling modalities, tailored thermal solutions, and redundancy to meet any enterprise requirement. Proven by global client successes, ASUS provides expert consultation, a broad portfolio of AI and storage solutions, seamless infrastructure deployment, application integration, and ongoing services—combining scalability, and sustainability to drive business value and intelligence.

At NVIDIA GTC 2026, Micron announced it is in high-volume production of three products at once, all timed around and designed for the Vera Rubin platform. The headline is HBM4 with the 36 GB 12-high stack started shipping in volume in Q1 2026, built for NVIDIA Vera Rubin. It hits over 11 Gb/s pin speeds for more than 2.8 TB/s of bandwidth, 2.3 times what HBM3E offered, while also improving power efficiency by over 20%. Micron has also shipped early samples of a 16-high 48 GB variant to customers, a 33% capacity bump per HBM placement over the 12H stack. Micron also announced that its 192 GB SOCAMM2 memory modules are now in high-volume production. Designed for Vera Rubin NVL72 systems and standalone Vera CPU platforms, it enables up to 2 TB of memory and 1.2 TB/s of bandwidth per CPU, with the broader SOCAMM2 portfolio spanning from 48 GB to 256 GB.

On the storage side, Micron 9650, the industry first PCIe Gen 6 data center SSD designed specifically for NVIDIA BlueField-4 STX architecture, is in mass production as we already reported here. It boasts sequential read speeds of up to 28 GB/s and can handle 5.5 million random read IOPS, essentially doubling the read performance of its Gen 5 predecessor. Furthermore, it offers a performance-per-watt ratio that is twice as efficient.

Lenovo introduces the next-generation of AI workstations optimized for on-device AI development, inference and creation, including the ThinkPad P14s i Gen 7, ThinkPad P14s Gen 7 AMD, ThinkPad P16s i Gen 5, ThinkPad P16s Gen 5 AMD, ThinkPad P1 Gen 9 and the powerhouse desktop ThinkStation P5 Gen 2.

Designed for students, engineers, data scientists and everyone in between, the new workstations pack unprecedented performance capable of tackling even the most demanding workflows, including CAD, BIM, data science, AI development and more. Part of Lenovo's new Hybrid AI Advantage solutions with NVIDIA, the systems accelerate AI adoption, boost business productivity, and bring faster ROI from AI deployments, reflecting Lenovo's commitment to deliver smarter, more adaptive solutions to meet modern challenges.

Samsung Electronics, a global leader in advanced semiconductor technology, today announced the comprehensive AI computing technologies it will showcase at NVIDIA GTC 2026 in San Jose, California, scheduled for March 16-19. As the industry's only semiconductor company offering a total AI solution spanning memory, logic, foundry and advanced packaging, Samsung will exhibit its full suite of products and solutions that enable customers to design and build groundbreaking AI systems. To learn more about Samsung's AI solutions, please visit the company's GTC 2026 booth (#1207).

The centerpiece of Samsung's showcase at NVIDIA GTC 2026 will be the new sixth-generation HBM4, which is now in mass production and is designed for the NVIDIA Vera Rubin platform. Samsung's HBM4 is expected to help accelerate the development of future AI applications, delivering consistent processing speeds of 11.7 gigabits-per-second (Gbps), which exceeds the industry standard of 8 Gbps, and can be enhanced to 13 Gbps.

Penguin Solutions, Inc. (Nasdaq: PENG), the AI factory platform company, today announced the industry's first production-ready KV cache server that utilizes CXL memory technology to address the critical "memory wall" challenge in AI inferencing—Penguin Solutions MemoryAI KV cache server. This innovative solution delivers up to 11 TB of CXL-based memory engineered to optimize performance of enterprise scale inference, including agentic AI. The result is lower latency, higher throughput, increased efficiency of GPU clusters, consistent achievement of stringent service-level agreements (SLAs), and faster time-to-first-token (TTFT).

While model training and tuning is primarily compute-bound and occurs episodically, the continuous memory-bound and latency-sensitive inference workloads required for inference and agentic AI are complex and fundamentally different. Inference demands are typically 30% compute driven (GPU) and 70% memory driven (RAM), elevating the need for greater memory capacity and causing performance bottlenecks and GPU idle time. Accelerating memory-dependent AI processes, Penguin's MemoryAI KV cache server increases memory capacity by integrating 3 TB of DDR5 main memory and up to eight 1 TB CXL Add-in Cards (AICs).

Dell Technologies (NYSE: DELL) today announces support for NVIDIA NemoClaw and NVIDIA OpenShell, expanding its collaboration with NVIDIA to advance secure, autonomous AI agents. For developers working locally, Dell and NVIDIA are teaming up on NVIDIA NemoClaw—an open source stack that simplifies running OpenClaw always-on assistants, more safely, with a single command. As part of the NVIDIA Agent Toolkit, it installs the NVIDIA OpenShell, an open source runtime providing a secure environment for running autonomous agents, and open source models like NVIDIA Nemotron.

Dell Pro Max with GB10 and GB300 provide purpose-built desktop platforms that allow enterprises to build and run autonomous, self-evolving agents locally with frontier-level intelligence. As the first OEM to ship a desktop with NVIDIA GB300 Grace Blackwell Ultra Desktop Superchip, Dell brings 20 petaFLOPS of performance and 748 GB of memory directly to developers' desks.

HYTE, a leading manufacturer of cutting-edge PC components, is happy to reveal that its Firefly-themed product lineup inspired by the iconic Stellaron Hunter from HoYoverse's Honkai: Star Rail is now available for purchase at HYTE.com.

At the heart of the product lineup is the Official HYTE Y70 Firefly Case, which features a titanium silver colorway, 360-degree character artwork, and thematic elements and iconography inspired by Firefly and her S.A.M. armor throughout the chassis. In addition to the standard case, there are still limited-edition JP versions of the case that feature Kanji / Katakana branding for the Honkai: Star Rail logo. There is also an exclusive keychain based off Firefly's in-game phone case that can only be obtained by ordering either the US or JP PC case.

Kioxia America, Inc. today announced the development of its Super High IOPS SSD, a new type of SSD enabling the GPU to directly access high-speed flash memory as an expansion to High Bandwidth Memory (HBM) in AI systems. The new Super High IOPS SSD, the KIOXIA GP Series, is purpose-built to meet the growing performance demands of AI and high-performance computing, providing larger GPU-accessible memory capacity for faster data access to AI workloads. Evaluation samples of KIOXIA GP Series will be available to select customers by the end of 2026.

The NVIDIA Storage-Next initiative addresses the anticipated shift from compute-intensive to data-intensive workloads and the expanded need for GPU-accessible memory space, currently limited by HBM size. Expanding the GPU's usable memory space allows access to larger data sets and improves GPU utilization by moving more data closer to compute resources.

Super Micro Computer, Inc. (NASDAQ: SMCI), a Total IT Solution Provider for Cloud Computing, AI/ML, Storage, and 5G/Edge, today unveiled its upcoming system portfolio powered by the NVIDIA Vera Rubin platform. As data centers transform into AI factories, producing intelligence at massive scale, agentic reasoning, long-context AI, and Mixture-of-Experts (MoE) workloads are driving demand for an entirely new class of compute and storage infrastructure. Supermicro's NVIDIA Vera Rubin NVL72, NVIDIA HGX Rubin NVL8, NVIDIA Vera CPU systems are being designed and built with Supermicro's Data Center Building Block Solutions (DCBBS) advanced liquid-cooling technology stack to accelerate time-to-market for customers.

"We are entering a new era where every organization requires an AI factory to win in the marketplace, as the demand for inference workloads is reshaping what data center infrastructure must deliver," said Charles Liang, president and CEO of Supermicro. "Supermicro's DCBBS technology stack is being engineered to empower upcoming NVIDIA Vera Rubin NVL72, HGX Rubin NVL8, and Vera CPU systems to give our customers a fast, clear path to deploying next-generation AI factories, at scale. We are excited to provide an early look at these solutions as a testament to being first to market with the infrastructure that will power the next frontier of AI."

NVIDIA today launched the NVIDIA Vera CPU, the world's first processor purpose-built for the age of agentic AI and reinforcement learning—delivering results with twice the efficiency and 50% faster than traditional rack-scale CPUs. As reasoning and agentic AI advances, scale, performance and cost are increasingly driven by the infrastructure supporting the models that plan tasks, run tools, interact with data, run code and validate results.

The NVIDIA Vera CPU builds on the success of the NVIDIA Grace CPU, enabling organizations of all sizes and across industries to build AI factories that unlock agentic AI at scale. With the highest single-thread performance and bandwidth per core, Vera is a new class of CPU that delivers higher AI throughput, responsiveness and efficiency for large-scale AI services such as coding assistants, as well as consumer and enterprise agents.

NVIDIA today unveiled NVIDIA DLSS 5, the company's most significant breakthrough in computer graphics since the debut of real-time ray tracing in 2018. DLSS 5 introduces a real-time neural rendering model that infuses pixels with photoreal lighting and materials. Bridging the divide between rendering and reality, DLSS 5 empowers game developers to deliver a new level of photoreal computer graphics previously only achieved in Hollywood visual effects.

"Twenty-five years after NVIDIA invented the programmable shader, we are reinventing computer graphics once again," said Jensen Huang, founder and CEO of NVIDIA. "DLSS 5 is the GPT moment for graphics—blending hand-crafted rendering with generative AI to deliver a dramatic leap in visual realism while preserving the control artists need for creative expression."

A fresh leak from Geekbench has surfaced listing an unannounced AMD processor with the OPN (Ordering Part Number) code 100-000001713-31. As for the platform, that is listed as Plum-MDS1, a somewhat direct hint to Medusa Point, AMD's next-gen mobile APU family based on Zen 6. The chip is a 10-core, 20-thread with a 2.4 GHz base clock, though actual test results show it running closer to 1.3-2 GHz, unsurprising for an engineering sample this early in development. Each core gets 1 MB of L2 cache, and the L3 comes in at 32 MB, up from 24 MB on Strix Point and 16 MB on Hawk Point. This is 50% more cache than the current 10-core parts like the Ryzen AI 9 365. The test system had 32 GB of memory installed, type unspecified. Benchmark numbers aren't worth reading into at this stage, as the chip spent most of the test hovering around 1.39 GHz and barely peeked above 2 GHz, well below what a final retail part on a 3 nm process would run at. Too early to draw any conclusions from the scores.

Shipping manifests from Planet3DNow linked to the "Medusa" codename suggest a 4C+4D layout, standard and density-optimized cores, though that doesn't exactly explain the 10-core count seen in Geekbench. One theory is that two additional low-power cores sit in the IO die, bringing the total to ten. The part is expected to be a 28 W TDP mobile chip for the FP10 socket. Medusa Point is shaping up to combine Zen 6 CPU cores with a mix of RDNA 5 and RDNA 3.5 graphics, plus an updated NPU. A launch around CES 2027 fits the AMD usual cadence, meaning there is likely a long wait ahead; however, this Geekbench entry confirms that testing is already happening, whether at AMD itself or at one of its early hardware partners.

NACON, a leader in premium gaming gear and parent of the RIG audio brand, today unveiled their latest release in their R-SERIES of headsets - the RIG R5 SPEAR MAX HD. Purpose-built for PC gaming, the R5 MAX HD features innovative GrapheneQ drivers from Ora, setting a new standard for studio-grade game audio.

"We're very excited to partner with Ora to bring their groundbreaking audio technology to our R-SERIES headsets," said Head of Audio Product at RIG, Michael Jessup. "The R5 MAX HD forms the next step in our mission to develop the ultimate range of headsets for competitive gamers."

SilverStone Technology today announced the RM100, a 1U rackmount server chassis designed for space-constrained server environments. Despite its compact 1U form factor, the RM100 supports up to ATX motherboards, providing system integrators and enterprise users with a flexible and efficient platform for building rackmount systems.

The RM100 is engineered with system configuration flexibility in mind. Its reversible chassis design allows users to choose whether the I/O ports face the front or the rear of the rack, making it easier to adapt to different rack layouts and installation environments. The power supply position can also be adjusted to suit various deployment requirements. In addition, components such as the rail kit, handles, drive bays, and power module are designed to be reversible, offering greater convenience and adaptability during system integration and installation.

AMD has published a guide for running OpenClaw locally on Windows through two distinct hardware paths it calls "RyzenClaw" and "RadeonClaw," both built around its own silicon and designed to keep AI agent workloads off the cloud entirely. The push is part of AMD's broader "Agent Computer" narrative, where it argues that not every AI workload belongs in a data center, people and businesses want control over their data, affordable always-on AI without usage limits, and the confidence that their models are running locally rather than on someone else's infrastructure. The setup runs through WSL2 with LM Studio handling local LLM inference via llama.cpp, and supports Memory.md through local embeddings, no cloud dependency required. AMD says the environment can be configured in under an hour, targeting early adopters and developers experimenting with personal AI agents.

The RyzenClaw path is built around a Ryzen AI Max+ system with 128 GB of unified memory, AMD specifically recommends reserving 96 GB as variable graphics memory for this use case. Running the Qwen 3.5 35B A3B model, that configuration delivers around 45 tokens per second, processes 10,000 input tokens in roughly 19.5 seconds, supports a 260K token context window, and can run up to six agents concurrently. AMD is positioning this as capable of "agent swarm" experimentation on consumer hardware. RadeonClaw takes a different approach, pairing OpenClaw with the Radeon AI PRO R9700, a workstation-class card with 32 GB of VRAM. That setup is considerably faster, around 120 tokens per second with the same model, and 10,000 input tokens processed in about 4.4 seconds. The tradeoff is a smaller 190K token context window and support for only two concurrent agents, compared to six on the Ryzen AI Max+ path.

GMKtec unveiled its next-generation EVO-T2 Desktop AI Supercomputer Series during Intel's 3rd-Generation Core Ultra processor launch event in Shanghai. Powered by Intel Core Ultra X9 388H and X7 358H processors based on the Panther Lake architecture, the EVO-T2 delivers up to 180 TOPS of AI computing power, positioning it as one of the most powerful desktop AI mini PCs available.

The system integrates Intel's latest 18A (1.8nm-class) manufacturing technology, featuring RibbonFET gate-all-around transistors and PowerVia backside power delivery, marking a major milestone in Intel's semiconductor roadmap.

8BitDo is adding another variant to its Retro R8 mouse lineup, this time drawing inspiration from the Commodore 64. Like the previous R8 models, the C64 Edition keeps the same internals: a PAW 3395 optical sensor with six DPI levels between 50 and 26,000 DPI, and polling rates up to 8,000 Hz over wired and 4,000 Hz over 2.4G (Bluetooth is capped at 125 Hz). The symmetrical design supports both left and right-hand use, and four programmable side buttons can be configured through the 8BitDo Ultimate Software. The switches haven't been specified for this variant. The NES-inspired N Edition uses Kailh Sword GM X micro switches, but 8BitDo hasn't confirmed whether the C64 Edition carries the same.

The mouse ships with a charging dock that doubles as a wireless signal extender, which is a nice touch. Battery life is rated at 100 hours over Bluetooth or between 26 and 105 hours on 2.4G depending on polling rate, with a full charge taking around 2.5 hours. All three connection modes are supported: Bluetooth LE 5.3, 2.4G wireless, and wired USB. The 8BitDo Retro R8 C64 Edition mouse is priced at $49.99, in line with the existing NES-inspired N Edition.

As PC hardware continues to grow more powerful, builders are no longer hiding their systems under desks. The new SAMA V62 is designed for users who want their build on display, combining curved panoramic glass, bold integrated lighting, and strong cooling support in a clean, builder-friendly chassis. With seven pre-installed ARGB fans and support for large radiators, the V62 delivers both visual impact and thermal performance straight out of the box.

A Clear 270° Panoramic View
The V62 features a curved tempered glass panel that creates a sweeping panoramic view of the system's interior. The smooth curve removes harsh edges and visual breaks, offering a clean, uninterrupted look that highlights modern components and lighting setups. It's a design typically found in higher-priced showcase cases, now made more accessible for everyday builders.

Samsung is reportedly planning to bring its 2 nm process to the base die of HBM4E, its 7th-generation high-bandwidth memory. This comes just a month after the company shipped the industry's first commercial HBM4, and alongside a separate effort to redesign the HBM4E power delivery network to handle the increase in power bumps from 13,682 to 14,457 within the same footprint. Until HBM3, the base die had a somewhat passive role, sitting at the bottom of an HBM stack and handling power and signal control. Starting with HBM4, it took on a more active role by handling some compute tasks directly, making the underlying process node increasingly important. For HBM4, Samsung already had an edge here, using 4 nm logic base dies from its own foundry paired with its latest 1c DRAM, well ahead of the 12 nm (N12) process SK hynix sources from TSMC. Moving to 2 nm for HBM4E would extend that lead further, improving power efficiency, thermal management, and area utilization.

The other key players in the industry are also focusing on custom HBM4E as the next battleground, with TSMC stating it plans to use its 3 nm process for custom HBM4E, and SK hynix also working on its own variant. With its latest 2 nm node push, Samsung appears to be making a deliberate move to stay a step ahead on process technology. Standard HBM4E is expected mid-year, with custom product tape-in following in the second half of the year. The Business Korea report also points to the foundry angle. Producing HBM base dies internally helps Samsung Foundry keep fab utilization high, and the 2 nm node is expected to play a major role in ramping production at the Taylor fab in Texas. There, equipment installation is already underway, with the first wafer tape-in targeted before year-end.

Imec, a world-leading research and innovation hub in advanced semiconductor technologies, has launched a first of its kind consortium with 26 European university groups that will jointly work on the technology roadmap beyond CMOS scaling (CMOS 2.0). This initiative will focus on design automation and chip architecture research for the next generation of chips. The consortium will benefit from the NanoIC pilot line, turning academic insights into industry-focused innovations. In the future, similar consortia will be set up around advanced materials and alternative compute systems.

CMOS 2.0 refers to a new paradigm, introduced by imec, that expands the chip making toolbox beyond traditional transistor scaling and its associated scaling challenges. CMOS 2.0 allows for more design flexibility by exploiting fine-grain wafer stacking technology to improve on-chip connectivity and offer higher technology heterogeneity to the system. It will result in tailored chips comprising multiple 3D-stacked layers that fulfil smartly partitioned functions. In that way, CMOS 2.0 will provide advanced, versatile 3D stacked platforms that push the boundaries of compute performance.

Acer Inc. (TWSE: 2353) announced its financial results for the fourth quarter of 2025 and fiscal 2025 ended December 31. In the fourth quarter, Acer reported consolidated revenues of NT$74.36 billion, up 12.6% YoY; gross profits of NT$8.59 billion, up 23.6% year-on-year (YoY) with 11.6% margin; operating income of NT$1.87 billion, up 82.3% YoY with 2.5% margin; and net income of NT$1.07 billion with earning-per-share (EPS) of NT$0.36.

For the full year of 2025, consolidated revenues reached NT$275.63 billion, up 4.1% YoY; gross profits of NT$29.99 billion, up 7.1% YoY with 10.9% margin; operating income of NT$5.14 billion, up 5.5% YoY with 1.9% margin; and net income of NT$3.78 billion with earning-per-share (EPS) of NT$1.26.

Silicon Motion Technology Corporation (NasdaqGS: SIMO), a global leader in designing and marketing NAND flash controllers for solid-state storage devices, today announced the launch of the SM8008, a PCIe Gen 5 x4 NVMe enterprise SSD controller purpose-built for data center boot drives and power-sensitive enterprise storage applications.

As hyperscale and enterprise data centers expand server deployments, boot SSDs have become a critical infrastructure component across every system node. The SM8008 addresses this growing demand with a controller architecture optimized for power efficiency, predictable performance, and enterprise-grade security at scale, while supporting the OCP Hyperscale NVMe Boot SSD Specification to meet production-ready enterprise deployment requirements.

Avalue Technology Inc. (TPEx: 3479.TWO) has officially launched the new EAX-R680BP ATX industrial motherboard, which is centered around a highly expandable platform architecture. Supporting the next-generation Intel Core Series 2 processor, it offers flexible dual PCIe Gen 5 card configuration capabilities. Designed for AI inference, high-performance computing, and data-intensive storage applications, the EAX-R680BP empowers system integrators and enterprise users to build computing platforms that balance performance, scalability, and long-term stability.

As edge AI, smart manufacturing, and data-driven applications continue to grow, the need for high-bandwidth expansion and computational acceleration in system architectures becomes ever more apparent. The EAX-R680BP industrial-grade motherboard from Avalue features an ATX form factor design that fully leverages the advantages of expansion flexibility and versatility. When combined with the Intel Core Series 2 processors, the EAX-R680BP motherboard provides a stable and scalable hardware foundation for a variety of applications. Thanks to its PCIe Gen 5 high-speed channel design, the motherboard can support the simultaneous operation of multiple GPUs or high-performance expansion cards, meeting the performance density demands of next-generation AI and edge computing.

MSI proudly introduces its latest generation of motherboards, purpose built to pair seamlessly with the new Intel Core Ultra 200S Plus Series processors. MSI 800 Series (Z890/B860/H810) motherboards are engineered to unlock the full potential of the newest desktop architecture, delivering and improved overall performance compared to the existing Intel Core Ultra Series 2 desktop processors. This ensures you can build a powerful, reliable system tailored to your needs.

"MSI bridges the gap between Intel's cutting-edge architecture and the high-speed demands of modern users. By pairing Intel's new Core Ultra 200S Plus Series Processors with its increased core counts and 5.5 GHz clock speeds, MSI's robust 16-phase Duet Rail Power System on the MAG Z890 TOMAHAWK WIFI II, we've created a platform that doesn't just run the latest games; it masters them. This is the definitive foundation for the next generation of high-performance computing", said James Yeh, VP, Computing & Display Group, MSI.

MSI today announces that its AI gaming desktops, the MEG Vision X AI and MPG Infinite X3 AI, are now equipped with the latest Intel Core Ultra 200S Plus Series processors (Arrow Lake-S Refresh). Featuring up to the Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus with 24 cores (8P+16E) and a 5.5 GHz max boost clock, these updated systems deliver faster gaming performance and significantly improved multitasking.

Performance Refined with Intel Core Ultra 200S Plus Series
The Intel Core Ultra 200S Plus Series brings targeted but meaningful upgrades over its predecessor—adding 4 more cores on both the Ultra 7 and Ultra 5 CPUs, a +200 MHz bump on P-Core all-core frequencies, and official DDR5-7200 MT/s memory support. The result is approximately 9% faster gaming performance compared to the previous generation, alongside massive leaps in multithreaded workloads—making these systems a compelling choice for gamers and creators who multitask heavily across streaming, editing, and gameplay simultaneously. The processors remain fully compatible with Intel 800 Series chipsets, meaning users get a meaningful performance uplift without any platform overhaul required.

Leading gaming accessories maker Turtle Beach Corporation (Nasdaq: TBCH), today revealed its newest variants in its award-winning line-up of Victrix fighting game gear, the new Victrix Pro KO Leverless Fight Stick - Street Fighter II: Champion Edition. The fully customizable Victrix Pro KO Leverless Fight Stick - Street Fighter II: Champion Edition is officially licensed by Sony Interactive Entertainment and Capcom and emblazoned with a bold new look celebrating the golden era of gaming. The Street Fighter II: Champion Edition design features the legendary Street Fighter Player Select screen as well as its iconic fighters Ryu and Chun-Li on the faceplate. And whether you choose Ryu, Chun-Li, or other favorite characters, you're still equipped to claim more victories in your chosen arena.

The Victrix Pro KO Leverless Fight Stick was named as the "2024 Best Tech" at the EVO Awards ceremony that recognizes excellence within the global fighting game community. Today, it remains the choice of gaming champions because it's designed and crafted to the highest standard with premium features and components. Hot swappable Cherry MX Speed Silver RGB switches, customizable RGB lighting, a removable aluminium top plate, and up to 16 moveable and mappable buttons give players total control over their gaming experience.

Display specialist AOC introduces the AOC 16T20E2, a compact and lightweight portable monitor designed for professionals, digital nomads, and hybrid workers who demand visual clarity and flexible connectivity wherever they work. Featuring a 15.6" (39.6 cm) Full HD IPS panel with wide 178°/178° viewing angles and a 1000:1 contrast ratio, the 16T20E2 delivers sharp, colorful visuals in a sleek, ultraportable form factor.

Ultraslim, ultra-light, ultraportable
At just 9 mm thin and weighing approximately 1 kg without its magnetic cover, the AOC 16T20E2 is one of the slimmest and lightest portable monitors on the market. It fits effortlessly into any backpack, laptop bag, or carry-on, making it the ideal companion for users who need a reliable second screen on business trips, at co-working spaces, in hotel rooms, or during client presentations. The display surface features 3H hardness for scratch resistance, ensuring durability even on the go.

A $2.7 billion (£1.97 billion) lawsuit against Sony has gone to trial in London, on behalf of around 12 million UK PlayStation users. Sony is accused of abusing its dominant market position by forcing digital game and add-on purchases exclusively through the PlayStation Store, keeping prices artificially higher than physical alternatives. The case is being heard at the Competition Appeal Tribunal and is led by Alex Neill, who has stated that "gamers have paid too much and they should get some money back." The claim was previously valued at up to $6.7 billion (£5 billion) before being revised down to its current figure. The case follows a similar pattern to other recent UK tech lawsuits. A comparable class action against Steam on behalf of 14 million users was cleared to proceed last month, and Apple was found in October to have abused its dominant position over App Store commissions, a ruling it is currently appealing.

Sony is fighting back, arguing it has invested years and billions into an integrated gaming platform that operates in a competitive market alongside Nintendo and Xbox, both of which use similar closed storefronts. Its lawyers contend that the margins earned on digital game sales aren't excessive and that the lawsuit fails to account for Sony's costs and the value of its platform. The company also frames the claimants' position as essentially demanding that third parties be allowed to sell on PlayStation while free-riding on the Sony infrastructure. If successful, the roughly 12.2 million eligible users, anyone who bought a digital PlayStation game or in-game download over the past ten years, would receive an estimated $217 (£162) each, on an opt-out basis.

Advantech (2395.TW), a global leader in industrial IoT, today announced an expanded collaboration with Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. to accelerate the deployment of generative AI (GenAI) at the edge. This collaboration centers on Advantech adopting the Qualcomm Dragonwing AI on-prem appliance solution, powered by Qualcomm Cloud AI 100 Ultra accelerator into the Advantech SKY-641E3 4U high-performance edge server. By utilizing a specialized PCIe switch backplane, this solution provides the high-bandwidth connectivity required to unlock the full potential of high-density AI inference for enterprise and industrial verticals.
Unmatched Inference Density for Massive Concurrency

Unlike standard dual-slot GPU servers, the SKY-641E3 is architected specifically for maximum inference throughput. By supporting up to 12 single-slot FH/FL accelerators within a single 4U chassis, it offers a superior density-to-footprint ratio. This configuration is optimized for high-concurrency edge workloads, such as city-wide intelligent video analytics or large-scale retail AI agents, allowing for the simultaneous processing of hundreds of real-time data streams without the thermal overhead of power-hungry training GPUs.

Acer today unveiled a new lineup of TravelMate Copilot+ PCs that empower organizations of all sizes to unleash the full potential of AI. The new TravelMate P4 14 AI, TravelMate P4 Spin 14 AI, TravelMate P2 16 AI, and TravelMate P2 14 AI business laptops are powered by up to the latest Intel Core Ultra Series 3 processors with Intel vPro, delivering real-world performance, long battery life, enterprise-grade security, and simplified manageability.

From SMBs to the public sector, the new lineup delivers a combination of performance, productivity, and security. The devices also represent the first Copilot+ PCs in the TravelMate P4 and P2 series, underscoring Acer's commitment to offering a robust commercial portfolio of AI-ready devices.

NVIDIA has released GeForce driver version 595.79 WHQL, adding Game Ready support for Crimson Desert and Death Stranding 2: On the Beach. On the bug fix side, three game-specific crashes are resolved. Crimson Desert and Star Citizen were both crashing on launch, and Resident Evil Requiem had a white glowing dots issue when Subsurface Scattering was enabled. Two general fixes are also included in this release. First is the one addressing GPU voltage being incorrectly capped when overclocked (previously resolved in GeForce Hotfix Display Driver version 595.76), and another fixing intermittent crashes or driver timeouts when playing multi-key DRM content in a browser on HDCP 1.x monitors.

Known issues still present include missing terrain in some areas of Enshrouded and occasional stutter in Arknights: Endfield. The release also adds G-Sync support for a batch of new monitors from Acer, AOC, ASUS, GIGABYTE, LG, MSI, Philips, and ViewSonic.

DOWNLOAD: NVIDIA GeForce 595.79 WHQL

Applied Materials, Inc. today announced it is working with Micron Technology to develop next-generation DRAM, high-bandwidth memory (HBM) and NAND solutions that increase the energy-efficient performance of AI systems, bringing together advanced R&D capabilities from Applied's EPIC Center in Silicon Valley and Micron's state-of-the-art innovation center in Boise, Idaho to strengthen the semiconductor innovation pipeline in the United States.

"Applied Materials and Micron have a long-standing partnership focused on driving higher performance and more energy-efficient advanced memory chips by pushing the boundaries of materials engineering and manufacturing innovation," said Gary Dickerson, President and CEO of Applied Materials. "We are excited to deepen our collaboration with Micron as a founding partner at the EPIC Center as next-generation memory technologies play an increasingly vital role in the future of AI systems."

Wolfspeed, Inc. (NYSE: WOLF), a global leader in silicon carbide technology, today announced that its 300 mm silicon carbide (SiC) technology platform could serve as a foundational materials enabler for advanced AI and high‑performance computing (HPC) heterogeneous packaging by the end of this decade.

"As AI workloads continue to increase package size, power density, and integration complexity, we believe new materials foundations will be increasingly important to extend advanced packaging roadmaps," said Elif Balkas, Chief Technology Officer at Wolfspeed. "Our 300 mm silicon carbide platform is designed to align SiC's material advantages with industry‑standard manufacturing infrastructure and expand the solution space for next‑generation AI and HPC packaging architectures."

As OpenClaw gains global traction, AI agents are reshaping productivity. Yet, many users face technical hurdles in deployment, from system setup to driver configuration. Beelink bridges this gap with a full-stack AI solution: ranging from exclusive "Lobster Red" models with preinstalled OpenClaw to dual-OS switching versions and plug-and-play SSD upgrade kits. This comprehensive lineup meets diverse user needs while significantly lowering the barrier to AI deployment.

1. New Hardware: Preinstalled OpenClaw Series—AI-Ready Out of the Box
Featuring a premium all-metal chassis in exclusive Lobster Red, these new models offer a distinctive look built for the AI era.

Razer, the leading global lifestyle brand for gamers, today unveils Dynamic Haptics, a new dual-source haptic system that unifies developer‑authored Razer Sensa HD Haptics effects with Audio‑to‑Haptics (A2H). Dynamic Haptics delivers a richer and more consistent haptic landscape across both handcrafted gameplay moments and the ambient world.

A New Level of Haptic Detail
For decades, immersion in games has been defined by what players see and hear. Higher resolutions, faster refresh rates, and spatial audio have pushed realism forward, but often stop short of one critical element: physical sensation.

At Embedded World, MediaTek unveiled a range of new Genio platforms ideal for powering a wide variety of IoT products and applications: MediaTek Genio Pro, Genio 420 and Genio 360. The Genio Pro series is MediaTek's premium offering for high-performance IoT and embedded offerings, while Genio 420 and Genio 360 bring efficient system-level edge AI performance to smart home, retail, industrial, and commercial IoT devices.

With its impressive AI, multimedia, and display capabilities, along with rich OS support, Genio Pro enables OEMs to develop the next generation of autonomous mobile robotics, commercial drones, edge AI devices, machine vision systems, and transportation and logistics platforms.

IBM (NYSE: IBM) and Lam Research Corp. (NASDAQ: LRCX) today announced a collaboration aimed at developing new processes and materials to support sub-1 nm logic scaling. Building on a long record of successful partnerships, the new agreement will focus on the joint development of novel materials, fabrication processes, and High-NA EUV lithography processes to advance IBM's logic scaling roadmap.

IBM and Lam have collaborated for more than a decade to advance logic fabrication, notably enabling early generations of 7 nm, nanosheet, and EUV process technologies. Under this new five-year agreement, the companies intend to extend logic scaling to the sub-1 nm node. The work will focus on developing new materials, advanced etch and deposition capabilities for increasingly complex device architectures, and new High-NA EUV lithography processes to enable next-generation interconnect and device patterning and accelerate industry adoption.

Nightdive Studios—renowned video game remaster developer and subsidiary of Atari—is thrilled to announce that SiN: Reloaded, the long-awaited remaster of the 1998 cult classic FPS, will launch in 2026 for PC and consoles. This faithful new edition of SiN boasts enhanced remastered visuals, modernized control schemes, and includes the Wages of SiN extra mission pack. It's time to pay for your sins, #$!%&!

Set in a near-future dystopian world, SiN: Reloaded puts you in control of security consultant Colonel John R. Blade as you take on the seductively evil Doctor Elexis Sinclaire. When Elexis, CEO of SinTEK Industries, begins injecting the streets with a DNA-altering drug, it's time to reassess the laws of morality by facing off against Elexis' unholy army of genetically-engineered mutants. Known for pushing the Quake II engine to its limits, the original SiN was lauded for introducing a groundbreaking amount of interactivity in every level. Players can hack their way into computer terminals using DOS-style code, use elevators and security cameras to wreak havoc, and traverse levels using a variety of vehicles, including a forklift, a patrol boat, and a helicopter. Your actions have consequences, creating branching paths as the game progresses.

AMD has released Ryzen Chipset Driver version 8.02.18.557, a maintenance update focused on bug fixes and restoring a couple of components that went missing in a previous package. Specifically, support for the AMS Mailbox driver and the S0i3 filter driver are back, both needed for power management and system communication on supported Ryzen platforms. A few known issues are still present. Users on chipset installer version 7 can't directly roll back to version 6 or older. If you need to do that, you'll have to uninstall the newer installer first, delete the Qt_Dependencies folder, and then install the older package.

Other minor fixes include driver names showing up in English on non-English operating systems, occasional failures when installing or upgrading the Ryzen PPKG component, and some compatibility issues with the AMS and S0i3 filter drivers on non-English OS environments.

DOWNLOAD: AMD Chipset Software 8.02.18.557

At Embedded World 2026, Intel launched the Intel Core processor Series 2 with P-cores, an industrial-ready platform engineered for mission-critical edge applications. Intel also announced its latest Edge AI suite for Health & Life Sciences, providing validated reference pipelines and benchmarking tools for AI-powered patient monitoring solutions.

"Intel continues to lead in edge computing, which remains one of our fastest-growing business segments," said Dan Rodriguez, Intel corporate vice president and general manager of the Edge Computing Group. " With the introduction of Core Series 2, our CES launch of Core Ultra Series 3, and our expanding Edge AI Suites, we continue to deliver comprehensive platforms that meet diverse edge customer needs with breakthrough performance, reliability, and integrated AI acceleration."

MONTECH, a global leader in PC cases, power supplies, and cooling solutions, proudly announces the launch of SKY 3, the next evolution of its iconic SKY series PC cases. SKY 3 introduces a reimagined modular internal architecture and integrated horizon lighting, designed to meet the demands of next-generation hardware while delivering a remarkably clean and adaptable build experience. With support for back-connect motherboards and next-gen GPUs, SKY 3 blends future-ready performance with refined, modern aesthetics.

Adaptive Modular Bottom Chamber
At the heart of SKY 3 is an innovative adaptive modular bottom chamber, featuring a fully swappable PSU compartment and bottom fan bracket that allow builders to customize internal layouts based on cooling priorities. In GPU Mode, intake fans are positioned directly beneath the graphics card to maximize static pressure and cooling efficiency. In CPU Mode, airflow is redirected toward the motherboard area, helping dissipate heat from VRMs and surrounding components while supporting stable CPU operation. This flexible design empowers users to tailor airflow behavior to their specific system configuration.

[Editor's note: Our in-depth review of the Montech Sky 3 is now live]

Akasa, a leading provider of thermal solutions, announced the Pascal MX, an IP65-rated dust-tight and water jet resistant aluminium fanless case designed for Mini-ITX and Thin Mini-ITX motherboard systems operating in industrial, outdoor or mission-critical environments. The Pascal MX addresses one of the core challenges in harsh-environment embedded computing: maintaining system reliability where conventional fan-cooled cases fail due to dust ingress and moisture. For engineers and system integrators attending Embedded World 2026 in Nuremberg from 10 to 12 March, the Pascal MX will be on display at Hall 1, Booth 640, alongside Akasa's wider range of fanless cases, CPU coolers, heatsinks, and thermal solutions.

At the heart of the Pascal MX is Akasa's patented spring-loaded CPU mounting system, which maintains consistent, uniform contact pressure across all supported sockets (Intel LGA1851, LGA1700, and LGA1200). This enables the same chassis to support Intel Core processors from 10th-14th Generation and the latest Intel Core Ultra (15th Gen) processors, all at up to 65 W TDP. Heat from the CPU and M.2 2280 SSD is conducted into the aluminium chassis via dedicated thermal modules, dissipating passively through the external fins. With no fans and no moving parts, the Pascal MX eliminates the primary sources of mechanical failure and particulate ingress that limit system uptime in demanding deployments.

Factory automation, physical AI in mobile robotics, and other AI-driven edge applications are rapidly evolving and driving the need for computing platforms that provide real-time AI processing, deterministic performance, and long-term reliability in always-on environments.

To meet these needs, AMD is expanding its AMD Ryzen AI Embedded P100 Series processor portfolio. New processors feature up to 2x higher CPU core counts, up to 8x higher graphics processing unit (GPU) compute, and an estimated 36% higher system tera operations.

ASRock Industrial announces new industrial motherboards supporting AMD EPYC 4005/4004, Ryzen 9000/8000/7000, and Ryzen Embedded 9000/7000 Series processors, expanding its platform portfolio across IMB-A1700, IMB-A1302, IMB-A1003, and IMB-A1002. Powered by AMD EPYC 4005 Series processors with up to 16 cores and 32 threads, delivering high-performance and energy efficiency for edge servers and enterprise workloads, alongside Zen 5-based Ryzen 9000 Series for exceptional computing power and Ryzen Embedded 9000 Series for long-term availability in reliable edge computing. Supporting ATX, microATX, and Mini-ITX form factors, these platforms feature DDR5 memory, PCIe Gen 5 expansion, multi-display capability, and rich industrial I/O to enable flexible system designs for computer vision, video analytics, AI-enhanced workloads, software development, gaming platforms, and professional-grade productivity systems.

IMB-A1700 Series: ATX Motherboard for high-performance
The IMB-A1700 ATX motherboard supports AMD EPYC 4005/4004, Ryzen 9000/8000/7000, and Ryzen Embedded 9000/7000 Series processors, delivering robust computing performance for demanding workloads. The board features four DDR5 5600 MHz ECC/non-ECC U-DIMM slots supporting up to 256 GB of memory, providing a stable foundation for high-throughput and multitasking environments. Expansion capability includes two PCIe x16 (Gen 5) slots, configurable as either one PCIe x16 (Gen 5) or two PCIe x8 (Gen 5), one PCIe x4 (Gen 4), and four PCIe x1 (Gen 4) slots, enabling flexible integration of GPUs, AI accelerators, and add-on cards. Storage support includes one M.2 key M for NVMe SSD and four SATA3 ports with RAID 0/1/10 support, enabling high-speed storage deployment. I/O connectivity is comprehensive, featuring seven USB 3.2 Gen 2 ports, eight USB 2.0 ports, and six COM ports, complemented by three 2.5G LAN and one 1G LAN. Supporting quad-display output via HDMI 2.0b and DisplayPort 1.2++ and built in an ATX form factor (12 x 9.6 inches), the IMB-A1700 is well-suited for AI-driven video analytics platforms, computer vision servers, high-end development systems, and performance-focused computing deployments.